Higher trucking rates by Feb 14

A month from today, shippers will be shelling out more for their trucking needs when North Harbor truck operators start implementing a 16% rate hike. This after the Allied Transport Group, Integrated North Harbor Truckers Association and WGA Truckers Association, the Supply Chain Management Association of the Philippines (SCMAP) and the Philippine Liners and Shippers Association (PLSA) agreed on the increase.

Starting Valentine’s Day, the new trucking rate will be P5,917.77, up P817.77 per 20-footer from P5,100 per 40km round trip to and from Metro Manila.

The extra cost should have been implemented as early as New Year’s Day but the truckers, collectively known as North Harbor Trucking Association, deferred the decision subject to further discussion with the SCMAP and PLSA.

“There really is a need to increase trucking rates and all parties agreed to it,” newly elected SCMAP president John Guillermo said after the meeting with truckers and PLSA late last week.

“SCMAP wanted it to be implemented on February 24 but the truckers asked for an earlier date claiming (the increase) is already long overdue,” he said.

PLSA said it also saw no problem with the increase because they are not directly affected by it anyway. “Nonetheless, we will discuss it with the PLSA Board. Whatever the decision of the SCMAP will also be carried by our Board. Based on our meeting, the rate increase is a go,” a PLSA official said.

Another meeting is set for January 23 to finalize implementation of the rate hike. At that meeting, the truckers will also submit to SCMAP a paper on how they arrived at the percentage of increase.

The higher cost of fuel and spare parts pushed truckers to seek a rate hike. The truckers said the bunker surcharge has increased 28% in the past four months – the latest of which was the 14% hike last December – yet their rates have remained the same.

As of last month, some truckers have already implemented the 16% rate increase on their in-house accounts.

In May 2006, INHTA, SCMAP and PLSA agreed to hike trucking rates by 18%, 12-percentage points lower than the 30% increase originally petitioned by the group.